This invention relates generally to spas and hot tubs and, more particularly, to water jet aerators used in spas and hot tubs.
Spas and hot tubs, which utilize jets of aerated water to provide their massaging action, generally have one or more water jet aerators spaced around the wall of the spa or hot tub for generating the jets of aerated water. One type of water jet aerator found in many spas and hot tubs mixes a stream of pressurized water with ambient air through a venturi type action. This venturi action takes place in an aeration chamber, with the air being pulled into the chamber from a passageway that is connected to the ambient atmosphere. The mixture of air and water is then discharged through a nozzle into the water contained in the spa or hot tub. The nozzle is often a swivel type nozzle, which allows the direction of the flow to be adjusted by the user of the spa or hot tub for maximum massaging action.
Many times, these adjustable venturi-type water jet aerators also include a flow control system for manually adjusting the flow of air and/or water. Several types of flow control systems have been utilized in the past. One type of flow control system adjusts only the water flow, with the air flow through the aerator remaining constant. A second type of flow control system adjusts both air and water flows simultaneously and proportionally. A third type of flow control system allows for independent adjustment of both air and water flows.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,541,780 to Moreland and U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,463 to Moreland et al. disclose a water jet aerator having a flow control system of the second type. The Moreland and Moreland et al. flow control systems each includes a valve body that is rotatably positioned in an aerator housing. The valve body has radially positioned air and water ports and the aerator housing has air and water inlets. When the valve body is rotated relative to the aerator housing, the air and water inlets in the aerator housing are opened or closed proportionally by the alignment of the ports in the valve body relative to the inlets in the housing. The specific proportion of air to water can be varied by altering the shape and spacing of the air and water ports in the valve body and the shape and spacing of the air and water inlets in the aerator housing.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,854 to Reynoso discloses a water jet aerator having a flow control system of the third type. The Reynoso flow control system includes a pair of concentric tubular sleeves that are rotatably positioned in an aerator housing. The sleeves have radially positioned air and water inlets. When the sleeves are rotated relative to the aerator housing, the air and water inlets in the aerator housing are opened or closed by the alignment of the ports in the sleeve relative to the inlets in the housing. The Reynoso jet aerator also includes a restrictor ring for adjusting the flow of aerated water from the water jet aerator. Another water jet aerator having a flow control system of the third type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,854 to Mathis.
In a typical ganged installation of water jet aerators in a spa or hot tub, several aerators are spaced around the wall of the spa or hot tub to form a parallel circuit. The air inlets in the aerator housings are joined to a common air manifold, which can be vented to the atmosphere or connected to the outlet of a blower. Similarly, the water inlets are coupled to a water manifold supplied with pressurized water from a pump. Valves may or may not be placed in the individual water lines that run to the water inlets in each aerator housing. However, in either case, this type of installation does not lend itself to easily allowing the spa user to divert water flow from one water jet aerator to another. Accordingly, there has been a need for an improved water jet aerator that allows water flow to be easily diverted among the several aerators. The present invention clearly fulfills this need.